Seventh year for Europa Cinemas Label at Venice

Europa Cinemas reconfirms its commitment to European film in the setting up of the 27 Times Cinema project, in partnership with the European Parliament’s Committee on Culture and Education and Giornate degli Autori/Venice Days.

Selected by Europa Cinemas Network exhibitors, 27 young film-lovers from 27 EU countries will be in Venice for the duration of the Mostra. The aim is to recreate the genuine spirit of film festivals, and encourage young film-goers to discover innovative work.

For Claude-Eric Poiroux, Director General of Europa Cinemas, “We are delighted to have been able to make this exciting project a reality. Young film-lovers are central to Europa Cinemas’ mission and we encourage our cinemas to use the Internet and social networks to attract younger audiences to European films. A key film festival such as Venice is the ideal place to bring together 27 young cinephiles and give them direct access to totally new works and their makers. It will be an experience they will never forget!”

The 27 young film-lovers will take part in meetings and discussions at the Venice Days Villa on the Lido, moderated notably by Variety journalists. They will also have the opportunity to debate with MEPs and Doris Pack, the President of the European Parliament’s Cultural Commission. The chats will be filmed and placed online live – on the website of our partner Cineuropa (www.cineuropa.org), as well as on the Venice Days (www.venice-days.com) and Europa Cinemas (www.europa-cinemas.org) websites.

27 Times Cinema is part of a larger project, the LUX Prize, the official cinema award of the European Parliament, whose fourth edition will be held in Brussels on 24 November. The three finalists, selected by a jury of industry professionals, are: Filipos Tsitos’ Plato’s Academy (Greece), Feo Aladag’s When We Leave (Germany, Europa Cinemas Label, Berlin 2010), and Illegal by Olivier Masset-Depasse (Belgium). The three finalists will screen as special events at Venice Days on 10 and 11 September. The 2010 Lux Prize winner will be voted on by the 736 members of Parliament in November.

Winning films receive the support of the Europa Cinemas exhibitors who give it additional promotion across the Network and commit themselves to extend the length of its run on screen. Also awarded at Cannes (Directors’ Fortnight), Berlin (Panorama), and Karlovy Vary, the Europa Cinemas Label went to the following films at Venice in previous years:

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